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Final Fantasy 14 Patch 5.3 brings Shadowbringers story to a close

Final Fantasy 14 is bringing the Shadowbringers expansion's story to its conclusion with Patch 5.3 while also adding some new quests to the NieR-inspired YoRHa: Dark Apocalypse story.

Ozzie Mejia

August 11, 2020 1:25 PM

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Final Fantasy 14 is receiving a substantial update with today's 5.3 patch, titled Reflections in Crystal. On top of offering a series of updates for the game's quests, side quests, jobs, classes, and everything else, this looks to be a milestone patch for Square Enix's long-running MMORPG. This will be the patch that brings the Shadowbringers storyline to its conclusion.

The final line of main quests for Shadowbringers will start off with In the Name of the Light, which will be accessible to players at Disciple of War or Magic level 80 or above. The remaining quests are all shrouded in mystery, likely in order to avoid story spoilers. There are 11 other missions following In the Name of the Light, all of which will bring this epic expansion to an end.

That's not all, as far as story content goes, though. Additional quests have been added to the YoRHa: Dark Apocalypse storyline. If you've been following this story, this is the line of quests that ties in with Square Enix sister series NieR, penned by series producers Yosuke Saito and Yoko Taro. Three more missions are now available, starting with We Can Rebuild Her, which requires players to be at Disciple of War or Magic level 80 or above.

As one might imagine, there's a lot for current players, mainly those who own the Shadowbringers expansion, to dive into. But what if you're a new player who thinks this whole Final Fantasy MMORPG thing looks like fun? Square Enix is lowering the barrier of entry for newcomers by expanding the free trial period significantly.

As we noted back in July, the Final Fantasy 14 free trial will now encapsule the entirety of the A Realm Reborn campaign and now include the full Heavensward expansion, which takes players through Patch 3.56. The level cap is being increased all the way up to Level 60 and allows for players to try out up to 13 jobs and classes, including the Dark Knight, Machinist, and Astrologian from Heavensward. All players are also free to explore the full Palace of the Dead all the way through the deepest floor.

Those new players will likely have a lot of catching up to do if they hope to eventually reach Shadowbringers content. Fortunately, Square Enix is streamlining the main questline in order to cut straight to the chase and get players the critical quest points before getting them up to speed. And if you want to traverse the world of A Realm Reborn a little faster, the flying mounts from Heavensward can now be taken anywhere in A Realm Reborn.

The full update notes for Patch 5.3 can be found on the Final Fantasy 14 Lodestone. If you want to learn more about the making of Shadowbringers, why not revisit our lovely PAX 2019 interview and learn more about what went into this acclaimed expansion?

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?